Weather across the nation: 11/1/12

The remnants of Superstorm Sandy continued to lift northward into eastern Canada on Thursday.

This system produced more widespread rain showers with breezy winds. Rainfall totals remained less than 0.5 inches across the region, with strong wind gusts from 40 to 50 mph. High pressure built in behind this system, which brought drier conditions to the eastern U.S.

Meanwhile, in the West, a trough of low pressure moved eastward over the Pacific Northwest and pushed a cold front through California and into the Intermountain West.

This system triggered rain showers from Oregon and Washington through Idaho and central California, with snow showers at the highest elevations of the Cascades and Sierras. Snowfall accumulations ranged from 1 to 3 inches. Heaviest rainfall was reported at Blue Canyon, Calif., with a midday total of 0.84 inches of rain.

In the center of the nation, dry and cool conditions continued as flow from the north persisted. However, a ridge of high pressure to the south started to push warmer air in from the Southern U.S.

High temperatures ranged in the 40s and 50s across the Midwest, while the Southern Plains saw highs in the 80s. Overnight and early morning low temperatures varied in the 20s and 30s across parts of the Rockies. The coolest temperature was reported at 17 degrees in Alamosa, Colo.

ON THIS DATE....... The early years of the National Weather Service began on this date in 1870. On this day, 24 United States Army Signal Corps observers from around the country took weather reports at precisely the same time. These reports were then sent to Washington, D.C., for further distribution to newspapers.